A debt-ridden driver has been sentenced to 51 months in prison for orchestrating a dangerous stunt involving his electric Jaguar, which he claimed had malfunctioning brakes. Nathan Owen, 33, was found to have fabricated the incident to avoid payments on the £70,000 vehicle.
Owen was traveling at speeds up to 86 mph on multiple motorways in March 2024 when he called emergency services, reporting that his Jaguar I-PACE would not stop. During the 35-minute incident, which spanned 38 miles across the M58, M57, and M62 in Merseyside, Owen did not attempt to brake, according to an examination of the vehicle. Police dashcam footage showed officers repeatedly attempting to box in the speeding car, with Owen colliding with a police vehicle 31 times.
The car eventually came to a halt near Warrington, Cheshire, when its battery charge depleted. Dashcam footage revealed the vehicle's brake lights illuminating as it slowed to a stop.
Investigations by authorities found no faults with the car. A court heard that Owen had contacted a loan company minutes before calling 999, seeking to borrow an additional £3,000 on top of an existing £3,000 loan, and was denied. Text messages recovered from his phone also indicated discussions about how to get rid of the vehicle, including having it written off, in the months preceding the incident.
Owen had entered into a finance agreement for the Jaguar in September 2023 and was reportedly in arrears with the finance company, owing approximately £5,000. He pleaded guilty to dangerous driving and two counts of fraud in June. In addition to his prison sentence, Owen has been banned from driving for five years upon his release.
Sentencing Owen, Judge Ian Unsworth KC stated that the driver's actions led to a significant police operation, caused public alarm, and resulted in substantial disruption. He noted that police officers placed themselves in danger believing they were responding to a genuine emergency, while Owen sought to profit from his deception.
A statement from Jaguar Land Rover UK indicated that the company incurred an additional £50 million in marketing expenses to counteract the negative publicity generated by the false allegations, which resulted in approximately 180 pieces of adverse media coverage. Owen's defense attorney described his actions as 'frighteningly stupid,' attributing them to a tendency to 'live in a fantasy world.'